When I worked as a young professional in the government planning agency, NEDA, there was no time clock where we could punch cards upon reporting for and leaving duty. The top boss believed in the honor system and we simply logged into a record book the time when we arrived for work and left for home. Though it worked, some employees just couldn’t help secretly watching over others who they didn’t fully trust to be honest enough. So everyone was honest, some out of sincerity, some out of fear of being caught, I guess.

When I transferred to work in a university, we clocked in and out at a bundy clock station. There was no way anybody could cheat. Through the years, my faith in the honor system became jaded as I grew older and witnessed all kinds of dishonesty - in business, politics especially, and even in professional circles. Election cheating, extortion by government employees, graft and corruption in all levels of government, adulterated products sold by multinationals, and more, all reflect dishonesty. Cynicism about the world gradually crept in. However, being in the outsourcing industry and working with people who I haven’t met face to face but constantly deal with electronically through email tells me, too, that honesty remains a strong virtue the world over. Entering into contract work with people you do not see but only talk with on the Internet requires a lot of trust and faith in people. This is true both for the outsourcer and the service provider. When I think about it, there is a great deal of trust involved; the outsourcer gets no guarantee that the service provider will indeed deliver the output on the agreed time. Neither does the service provider get a written assurance that he or she will be paid for the services. This scenario occurs everyday throughout the world, in contracts that involve large sums of money. And yet, the outsourcing industry, more particularly that niche of freelancers, survives because of this honor system. Sometimes, I can only cross my fingers and pray that the outsourcer will pay me. And they do, whether the invoice amounts to over a thousand dollars or just ten bucks.

I realize that this system works because being honest is mutually beneficial to both parties. If a service provider does not deliver, nobody will ever hire his or her services again. If an outsourcer/outsourcing agency reneges on a contract, it will end up blacklisted in freelancers’ forums. Indeed, honesty is still the best policy. Doing freelance work in the outsourcing industry is a day-to-day lesson on integrity and trust among people. Somehow, it keeps afloat my faith in humanity.

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